The borough also includes the towns of Billericay and Wickford and surrounding rural areas.

[4] In the 1990’s Basildon applied to become a unitary authority but this was declined, with the government asserting that the divergent interests of the three main towns meant any change to the status quo should involve splitting the borough; with Billericay and Wickford joining the districts of Brentwood and Rochford respectively.

Parts of the borough are also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.

It was formally opened on 14 November 1989 by Jack Cunningham, the Shadow Leader of the House of Commons.

The civil parishes are:[24] The district has three main urban areas: Basildon, Billericay and Wickford.

The remaining land, approximately half of the district is designated as green belt, has several sites of special scientific interest.

The district is linked well by road and rail with significant surrounding destinations, including London.

In the west of the Basildon district, the Dunton Plotlands is an area of small plots of land used as weekend cottages or smallholdings inhabited during the mid twentieth century.

Its partners also include the East of England Development Agency, English Partnerships, Essex County Council, and the Thames Gateway South Essex Partnership with support from the Department for Communities and Local Government.

The BBC noted the council had decided to sell for £1 a plot of land it bought next to the golf course for £1m in order to build a 4 star hotel.

[26] The district is connected to London and Southend via two train operators: c2c and Abellio Greater Anglia.